Wesleyan Courses

Eligibility and Benefit Details

Tenured, tenure-track, and adjunct faculty appointed for at least half time (.5 FTE) and administrative staff employed at least three-quarter time (.75 FTE) and their spouse or qualified domestic partner, are eligible to utilize the tuition benefit for enrollment in Wesleyan courses as described below.

Wesleyan’s employee tuition benefit program will cover tuition for a maximum of 6 full-credit courses per year. See options below:

Up to 2 courses in the fall
Up to 2 courses in the spring
Up to 2 courses in the summer
Up to 1 Winter Session course (undergraduate course only)

Eligible students receiving this benefit must pay registration fees and course fees, if applicable, and are responsible for purchasing any required books or other class materials. Students may take more than two courses in a term or more than six courses per year, but must pay all expenses, including tuition, registration and course fees for courses that exceed the Wesleyan benefit. Wesleyan staff, and partners of Wesleyan faculty and staff, who do not already have a bachelor's degree are encouraged to apply. They should consult with Wesleyan Human Resources to confirm eligibility for the tuition benefit.

Please note:

Classes taken during regularly scheduled work hours require supervisor approval.
Matriculation into a degree program (BA, BLS, MALS, MPhil, MA, or PhD) is subject to the regular admissions process for that degree.
Full-credit GLS courses are .75 credits; full-credit undergraduate courses are 1.0 credits.
Students wishing to take more than 2 courses in fall, spring or summer, or who wish to take more than 6 courses in a calendar year, will pay tuition for the extra course.

Tax implications of the tuition benefit:

In general, the IRS considers anything of value provided to an employee by an employer to be a form of compensation. All compensation must be reported as taxable wages and is subject to income tax withholding, unless specifically excluded by the Internal Revenue Code. As noted below, there are certain exclusions that apply to tuition benefits that allow some or all of the benefit to be non-taxable to the employee.

Covered Party	Course Level	Taxability	Internal Revenue Code Reference Allowing Taxation Exclusion
Employees	Undergraduate	Non-Taxable	117(d)
Employees	Graduate*	Non-Taxable Under $5,250 per calendar year Taxable Over $5,250 per calendar year	127
Spouses & IRS Dependent Children	Undergraduate	Non-Taxable	117(d)
Spouses	Graduate	All Benefits are Taxable	N/A
IRS Dependent Children	Graduate courses are not a covered benefit	N/A	N/A
Domestic Partners	Undergraduate and Graduate	All Benefits are Taxable	N/A

*Please note: Graduate level courses that are being used for credit towards an undergraduate degree program in which the employee is enrolled may also be non-taxable. Final determination will be made at the time of registration.

The full value of the taxable benefit will be included in the employee's federal (including Social Security and Medicare) and state taxable wages.

Semester Months of Taxation

Spring February through May

Summer July and August

Fall October through December

The additional taxable income and taxes withheld are reported on the W-2 form. The University is required to issue W-2 forms to employees by January 31st to provide the information necessary for completing their tax returns.

The value of the benefit will be incurred consistent with the GLS withdrawal policy as stated on the GLS site for Graduate Liberal Studies courses, the BLS website for BLS students, and the Student Accounts site for Undergraduate/Graduate courses.

Programs and degrees:

Graduate Liberal Studies: Master of Arts in Liberal Studies (MALS) and Master of Philosophy in Liberal Arts (MPhil)
Program description: http://www.wesleyan.edu/masters

After applying to the GLS program as either a degree-seeking or as a non-degree-seeking student, applicants will be notified once they have been approved to register for courses. Applicants for the MALS or MPhil degree must have already completed a bachelor’s degree or equivalent, however special permission may be granted to students without a bachelor’s degree to take GLS courses and apply them to the Bachelor of Liberal studies (see below) or to take GLS courses as a non-degree student. Eligible students will be able to register for GLS courses one week after the registration period begins for each term.

Bachelor of Liberal Studies (BLS)
Program description: http://www.wesleyan.edu/bls

Eligible individuals may apply for Wesleyan’s Bachelor of Liberal Studies. Admitted BLS degree candidates may start in fall or spring terms. Students may take undergraduate courses in the fall or spring terms or during Summer Session or Winter Session, and may also be eligible to take courses offered via the Graduate Liberal Studies program and apply them to the BLS.

Undergraduate courses are described in Wesmaps; GLS courses are described on the GLS website.

Community Scholars – non-degree study
Program description: http://www.wesleyan.edu/nondegree

Eligible individuals interested in taking undergraduate courses but who do not seek a degree, or those wishing to start taking undergraduate courses in summer or winter term with the intention of applying to BLS degree in the following (fall or spring) term, should apply to be Community Scholars. Please note: not all course types are covered by this program (e.g. programs where contracted instructors are required would not be eligible). Those with or without degrees are encouraged to apply. They should consult with Wesleyan Human Resources to confirm eligibility.

Graduate Courses
Program description: http://www.wesleyan.edu/grad/graduate-programs/specialstudentnondegree.html

Eligible individuals holding a B.A. degree or equivalent may apply to take graduate courses as a Special Graduate Student. Prior to registration, the Special Graduate Student will be required to obtain written permission to enter courses from the instructor of the course in which he or she wishes to be enrolled, and permission from the chair of the department under which the course is offered.